“The local market has helped the remaining players in the country, including Cebu’s furniture industry to survive. The furniture exporters continue to operate because of the domestic market,” Cobonpue said in the sidelines of the Sun Life Financial Philippines’ 120th anniversary launch held in Cebu recently.

Cobonpue said the Asean economy is something that the global community “should watch out for” with the impending Asean integration. He said exporters in Cebu should begin to position themselves in the local market today or else they will lose this chance once goods from Asean neighbors begin penetrating here.

The local furniture manufacturing industry, he said, continues to bank on the high demand for residential end-users and hotels, believed to have helped the industry survive.

In his case, though, Cobonpue said he limits the items he sells to hotels and commercial establishments because homeowners are reluctant to buy mass-produced furniture.

The local market, with some 90 million people belonging to the middle income class with more disposable income, is no longer a market that can be overlooked, he said.

Cobonpue stressed, however, that the United States remains e the biggest market for Philippine furniture products, accounting for about 60 percent. He also said markets around Asia, the Middle East and South America have been doing well.

Earlier, European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines (ECCP) executive vice president Henry Schumacher said the export sector, particularly furniture and home furnishing makers, should boost their presence and marketability in its “home-ground” while the domestic market is showing more interest with their products as compared to imported goods.

Source: Manila Bulletin